Re: The "news" that former FBI agent Mark Felt broke the law, broke his code of ethics, broke his oath and was the main source for Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward's articles that helped depose Richard Nixon, a few thoughts.

Can anyone even remember now what Nixon did that was so terrible? He ended the war in Vietnam, brought home the POW's, ended the war in the Mideast, opened relations with China, started the first nuclear weapons reduction treaty, saved Eretz Israel's life, started the Environmental Protection Administration. Does anyone remember what he did that was bad?

Oh, now I remember. He lied. He was a politician who lied. How remarkable. He lied to protect his subordinates who were covering up a ridiculous burglary that no one to this date has any clue about its purpose. He lied so he could stay in office and keep his agenda of peace going. That was his crime. He was a peacemaker and he wanted to make a world where there was a generation of peace. And he succeeded.

That is his legacy. He was a peacemaker. He was a lying, conniving, covering up peacemaker. He was not a lying, conniving drug addict like JFK, a lying, conniving war starter like LBJ, a lying, conniving seducer like Clinton -- a lying, conniving peacemaker. That is Nixon's kharma.

When his enemies brought him down, and they had been laying for him since he proved that Alger Hiss was a traitor, since Alger Hiss was their fair-haired boy, this is what they bought for themselves in the Kharma Supermarket that is life:

1.) The defeat of the South Vietnamese government with decades of death and hardship for the people of Vietnam.

2.) The assumption of power in Cambodia by the bloodiest government of all time, the Khmer Rouge, who killed a third of their own people, often by making children beat their own parents to death. No one doubts RN would never have let this happen.

So, this is the great boast of the enemies of Richard Nixon, including Mark Felt: they made the conditions necessary for the Cambodian genocide. If there is such a thing as kharma, if there is such a thing as justice in this life of the next, Mark Felt has bought himself the worst future of any man on this earth. And Bob Woodward is right behind him, with Ben Bradlee bringing up the rear. Out of their smug arrogance and contempt, they hatched the worst nightmare imaginable: genocide. I hope they are happy now -- because their future looks pretty bleak to me.

Stein began his career as a lawyer and speechwriter for Nixon. While I generally like the guy he's a little too close to the source material to be anything but highly biased here. Stein can say what he wants about Felt; damning Bob Woodward for breaking the news that Nixon was involved in a coverup is moronic. And that's not even including Nixon tampering with the subsequent investigation.

The fact that Nixon was on his way to being impeached by the Judiciary Committee, the House of Reps and probably the Senate as well should be more than enough to counter Stein's revisionisism. Ford's speedy pardon saved Nixon's ass.

Since you brought up the article Sundubman, what's your view of Nixon and his actions?

The defeat of the South Vietnamese government with decades of death and hardship for the people of Vietnam.
[khmer]No one doubts RN would never have let this happen.

woulda coulda shoulda.
Is there really any more validity to the hypothesis that these events wouldn't have occured if RN remained Pres than the hypothesis that these events would have played out roughly the same regardless of who was Pres of the US at the time? If JFK had never been shot, then Nixon would have never been Pres and put into a position of covering up a crime, and the khmer... woulda, shoulda, coulda- a fun game, and Ben can keep his money now that Jimmy has his own show.

Stewart's show is The Daily Show. It comes from the Comedy Central channel. It's well worth a watch if you have access. This week they also poked fun at Rummy for his praising Amnesty International's criticism of human rights abuses around the world and then turning on them when they called Gitmo the 'gulag of our time'. I'll bet politicians just hate videotape and The Daily Show.